Saturday, June 12, 2010

How I Have Changed

Last night, hubby and I went to Applebee’s for supper. As we were waiting for our food, I watched as people received their meals. At a table near us, there was a young couple with a child. They each ordered mini burgers, onion rings, some other fried option, and split a basket of fries. The thought of that much food just made me sick. Our bodies simply do not need that much food, especially the calorie laden kind. It made me all the more proud of myself for truly changing. The changes that I have made have not happened over night. And I realize I still have a long way to go. But I have come so far.

I have been thinking about trying to eliminate some of the processed foods that I eat and replace them with fruits, vegetables, healthy dairy, and nuts. I really don’t know where to begin. How do I know what is processed and what is not? Especially when it comes to dairy, I’m unsure of that. I don’t want to go off into the deep end and completely eliminate all processed foods because I believe in balance and in being able to sustain my healthy way of living. But I do want to try to make healthier choices overall. Lately I’ve been noticing that when I make a vending machine splurge, I am not satisfied and I am left feeling guilty, bloated, and my body drags. I appreciated your tips on ways I can avoid sugar cravings and I want to try to implement them. My goal is to try to choose unprocessed snacks. I love eating wheat thins or baked chips with my sandwich at lunch, but I think I could find a healthy alternative that would satisfy my craving just as well. I know this won’t happen over night either, but slowly and surely I will get there.

Today is another rainy day. It’s supposed to thunderstorm all week. Hubby and I have been wanting to spend the day at the pool some Saturday, I guess it won’t be today! We ran all of our errands last night, so I’m looking forward to a relaxing day at home. I’ll do my usual cleaning (while listening to the Two Fit Chicks Podcast), doing laundry and maybe doing some cooking. Have a great weekend!!

Give yourself a pat on the back for wanted to switch from processed to natural.

You have to figure out why you want processed foods in your life by asking a few questions: How does it benefit me? Is it really healthy for me? Why will I miss it if I stop eating it? Is it the cheaper way to go?

For me if it is processed with words that I can not pronounce it will not go into my body. These foods are edible chemicals.

I would like to encourage you to start small by replacing the processed foods with natural foods(fruits, veggies, homemade sweet snacks, etc). Start doing research on how your food is processed. For me if its in a bright shiny box and have a name that is not natural that is my cue to stay away. For me going 100% organic made my life so much easier. I wish you luck.

I think you are on the right path with moving to unprocessed foods. I think you don't need to worry so much about dairy. Although, when having things like yogurt or cheese, make sure the ingredient list is as simple as possible. This will likely mean that you will need to move to light or full fat versions. Ever look at a fat free yogurt label? A lot of times it has gelatin and other stabilizers in it. If you need fat free yogurt, Fage or Chobani brands are the way to go.

I still have crackers, but just change the options. Triscuits and stone ground wheat crackers instead of baked chips.

I love crackers too, but found that I couldn't eat a reasonable portion, I would always go back for more. Maybe it's the carbs that keep us coming back. I think your idea to reduce the processed foods is a good one. I really notice that having a salad or piece of fruit as a side with lunch instead of a simple carb has helped with cravings.

You are so on the right path friend! I think this is the first sign of binges stopping! I feel the same way too. Other day I had a really bad urge to eat Lays, I gave in and ate and then I had the worst feeling in my stomach! I was serious considering throwing it all up! I somehow don't find chips appealing since then!

I've taken most processed foods out of my diet..and have also taken most dairy out and now have soya instead.Will see how it goes....like you I started off slowly, but do have potato chips now and again....thats processed, but very tasty when I'm wanting a handfull of something salty!

I agree with the other comments, don't worry about dairy too much. Fat free yogurts are really not good for you - lots of artificial crap in them. And watch out for some cheeses (especially fat free), otherwise dairy is okay.

I would say just start reading labels, and try to pick stuff that has as few ingredients as possible. You can find some good choices that are pretty simple in terms of ingredients, yet can bring you the variety and convenience that you'd like in your diet.